Guest Post: How Leprosy and a Servant Girl became Providence

Teaching elementary chapel from kindergarten through fifth grade—all at one time—was a joy for me. I had thirty minutes to sing, pray, and teach stories from the Bible. One particular series studied young people in the Bible who did great things. I dramatized David versus Goliath, Gideon and his glow stick bearing army (the Israelites had torches but those aren’t school approved) and a servant girl in the Book of II Kings who bravely spoke up about a prophet in Israel who could heal her master from leprosy. This poor servant girl would not leave my mind. We knew she was an Israelite. We knew she was captured by the Aramean army. We knew she believed the prophet could heal her master—who just happened to be an enemy army commander. But that is all we knew. I decided to write a story that gave this brave girl’s beginnings, and because I couldn’t leave her in captivity, I set her freedom into motion. And of course, she had to have a romantic interest, someone as brave and outspoken as her. Alas, my story “Providence: Hannah’s Journey” became a reality after many months of writing and revisions and yes, rejections. I am thrilled to be a debut author with Pelican Book Group and to bring you the story of a servant girl, who through her words, changed history.

I’ve always wanted more details on the minor characters who appear in the bible. I know God doesn’t consider any of us to be minor characters, so I’m thrilled to find a book that makes those characters shine.

Great post, Barbara! I’m excited for this wonderful book’s release and the one that follows. I knew there was something special about this book from its opening chapter! May God richly bless PROVIDENCE.

Hi, Barbara! I always stand in awe of authors who write biblical fiction, and I’m eager to read Providence: Hannah’s Journey. Congratulations on this debut novel – I know it won’t be your last.

My mind is on a sermon my son shared with me last night. Just a short clip he’d seen on Facebook, but that little clip snared his attention and spoke to his heart, as it then did to mine. Your “stuck” season is over! Speaks to us as writers, as well, doesn’t it? 🙂

Hi Delia. Thanks for stopping by and for your encouraging words. I like that sermon image too. As Christians, we can let life’s irritations and heartaches get us “stuck.” We can forget the big picture of God and His Kingdom. As a writer, we are always praying we don’t get stuck with writers’ block.
My Monday morning had a few hurdles, but then, I received from the UPS driver, my physical copies of “Providence: Hannah’s Journey.” Yes!! My Monday just rocked!

Hi Tanya!Thanks for your kind words. One of these days I am going to visit Israel. For now, I look at old maps, check out books from the library on Ancient Israel, scan pictures friends have taken, and I also read other Bible accounts. Google makes it easy to see if something was around in Bible times. Sometimes I think it would be easier to write contemporaries.

I love my cover too, Lucette. Pelican did an excellent job. The image sets the tone for my heroine and her story. Plus, it’s very Biblical fiction-esque. When I started writing, I didn’t realize that certain genres have certain types of covers. Thanks for stopping by today.

I am thrilled to be here today talking about my debut novel. The inspiration came from the Word of God and a chapel lesson on the servant girl in II Kings 5. What’s going through your head today from a sermon, or a song? “Blest Are They” is playing in my head.My church started a series on The Sermon On The Mount.